Minnesota Twins easing Kyle Gibson into big-league rotation

MIAMI -- Kyle Gibson's first day in the big leagues wasn't too taxing.

An off day in Miami.

The Twins' ballyhooed pitching prospect flew in Monday from Louisville, Ky., got to the team hotel around 6 p.m. and headed out to dinner with fellow pitchers Ryan Pressly and P.J. Walters.

"It's a dream come true," Gibson said Tuesday at Marlins Park. "It's starting to kick in now that I went out on the field and got to play catch and got to throw a 'pen."

The 25-year-old right-hander threw only 20 to 25 pitches off the bullpen mound. Gibson, who was due to pitch Tuesday but now won't start until Saturday against Kansas City, will throw another short bullpen session Thursday once the Twins return to Target Field.

"I'm thankful they gave me five days to come up here and kind of get my feet wet," the former first-round draft pick said.

Now nearly 22 months removed from Tommy John surgery, Gibson went 7-5 with a 3.01 earned-run average in 15 starts at Triple-A Rochester this season. He has thrown 92 2/3 innings in his first full season following surgery, but the Twins insist there is no magic innings total for Gibson.

If Gibson averages six innings per start, he would cross the 150-inning threshold in 10 more starts.

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That could happen by mid-August, but the Twins are determined not to paint themselves into any Stephen Strasburg-type corners when it comes to their most advanced pitching prospect.

"Every guy is a little different, and there's been different numbers from 130 (innings) to 140," Antony said. "Some people have said 150. I think what we want to do is let him go out and pitch and we'll monitor the situation. That's the best way to go about this thing.

For instance, Gibson is on track to make his fourth big-league start July 14 at Yankee Stadium, the final game before the all-star break. The Twins could then push him to the back of the reset rotation in order to give him another eight days' rest between starts.

"If we think he's starting to labor -- and it's the intensity of the innings as well as the number of innings -- then we'll make an adjustment," Antony said. "If we have to shut him down or have to back him off or do what we have to do, we will."

Tuesday, however, wasn't the day for that.

"We're not really going to think about that too much right now," Antony said. "We just want to get him up here, give him an opportunity. He's earned that. He's worked for it, and (let's) see what he can do."

Gibson, who has thrown 121 innings since the surgery on Sept. 7, 2011, wouldn't get drawn into the public debate over whether the Twins were delaying his big-league debut in order to play the arbitration game. Considering other player promotions that have taken place over the past two weeks, it appears Gibson is safely on the far side of the cutoff point.

"You know what, I don't know that that had as much to do in this situation," he said. "I think the Twins thought there were a couple of things I needed to work on, and the starting pitchers were throwing well. At that point, it was looking for a spot where I could come in."

When Mike Pelfrey strained his back Saturday in Cleveland, the Twins had their opening.

For Gibson, who struggled to a 9.00 earned-run average with the big-league club in spring training, now it's a matter of finding a way to stick. That has been the Twins' preference all along.

He mentioned a conversation in recent weeks with his agent, who reminded him waiting a little longer could be a blessing.

"He said only 5 percent of guys come up and don't go back down," Gibson said. "The realistic view for me is I just want to work as hard as I can, and hopefully I can stay here. I don't think there's a guarantee I'm going to stay here forever. I can't take it that way. I've got to make sure I'm still attacking my work like I do every day."